The present invention relates to fin-shaped semiconductor structures and a method for fabricating the same, and in particular to a concept as to how to enhance the electrical properties of fin-shaped semiconductor structures.
The demand for ever smaller semiconductor structures led to the development of three-dimensional structures, deviating from simple planar geometries, as for example, to the development of FinFET devices.
However, the smaller the geometry of the devices, the higher the current-densities as compared to conventional devices. Ongoing shrinkage of the structures in semiconductor processing also requires an enhancement of the conduction probabilities of the semiconductor materials used. One related technique is using so-called “strained-silicon,” which is silicon with artificially increased or decreased lattice coefficients in the direction of the charge carrier transport, such that the carrier mobility increases. A device using such strained-silicon switches faster and is capable of transporting current at decreased conduction losses.